A couple of weeks ago I was talking to one of my clients who operates a security consultancy business. In an effort to increase traffic to his web site, he launched a blog.

I remember months earlier indicating that he should have content posted regularly and ensure he broadcasts his blog URL everywhere. For those curious, the blog is called Predictable is Preventable and was launched in January, 2008. During our chat, he indicated that there was not much commenting and it seemed that there was no return in blogging. Throughout the discussion, his comments consistently raised two key issues in one way or another:

• How long does it take for to start having constant readers and comments?
• It’s unmotivating to post something really informative and not any response.

I must admit, that these are in all likelihood a couple of the most common, and in many ways most difficult beginner issues to deal with. Think about it, you have a business operation running and it feels like launching a blog (to help promote the business), is starting from scratch and developing contacts all over again. In some ways it could be construed as such.

Personally, I encountered the same issues when I launched my Linux based blog. I had zero traffic and it seemed like I was writing posts for myself. I felt like I was the only one reading the content. Laughingly, I guess I was! Humour aside, I realized that traffic is only going to increase if I get out there and make some noise.

One immediate approach I took was to email almost everyone I knew, asking if they’d be interested in my blog. I included some excitement in my message as well as a note to pass the email on if they new anyone that would be interested in my niche blog. This did encourage some traffic, but I noticed it was one big spike and then a sharp drop. But… there was a small group of regular readers (but nowhere near the amount of visitors I would have liked to have had.

Another approach I took was to join several forums related to my blog as well as a few other online (related) communities. Posting reply’s to questions for help and including links back to my blog, garnered much better results! One thing I learned the hard way (actually, two things, now that I think of it) was:

1. When joining communities such as forums, wait a bit before posting links back to your blog. Joining and posting back links right away, looks very much like blog spam (and in some situations it is). Remember, it’s important to preserve the integrity of your blog, not have it relegated to spam status.
2. Also, if you’re going to post back links, make sure there is enough content to capture interest and repeat visitors! Or if not, then in the initial, stages make sure you post quality content every day. (This way new visitors are more likely to bookmark your blog and return; as they see new content keeps appearing).

The two activities above really helped to initiate growth. One thing I learned that was highly appreciated was answering peoples questions in forums (or on their blogs), and answering them WELL. Then posting a link to an in depth article exploring their questions and answering them even more. Needless to say, I already had the in depth post written and published before answering their questions and inviting them to read a full, in depth post on the matter. This combination worked great for my Linux blog. I spent about 2-3 hours each day interacting with various forums and other online communities to build traffic. If you are working, even 30 minutes or an hour a day will provide results. The point I’m trying to suggest is not so much the time you spend building your traffic, but rather that you do so consistently! If you can only spend 20 minutes a day or a couple hours a week, so be it. But do it consistently and without fail!

The growth of my blog became very organic, in the sense that people were passing various blog post links around to others. In one case I had very good fortune luck in that someone posted one of my articles on Digg and it ended up on the front page. The majority of visitors from Digg were not repeat visitors, but the exposure did garner several readers – More importantly however was the discovery that the post was featured on hundreds of other web sites and blogs that monitored what appeared on Digg’s front page. My traffic shot up to unbelievable numbers. And again, out of those, I garnered even more readers. Again, the organic growth issue became obvious as I saw people recommending my blog posts to others.

One important aspect, which I’ve been trying to express to my client is the need to keep posting new content. You don’t want your blog to become like a book, read it and put it away as there’s no more to read. Your blog must, to use the analogy, be a never ending story.

I think, in my client’s case, that motivation may be one issue. I know from my own experience, that you cannot motivate people. You can give them all the tools and do your best to reach out to them, but at the end of the day, we have to pick up those tools and use them ourselves, nobody can do that for us.

In some fashion I think he’s not sure what to post about. I went through a phase myself, where it was a labour to figure out what I was going to write about and then formulate ideas and a resulting post. I hated doing it and began to procrastinate – because it was hard work. Hard only because I made it that way! It was my own though process and attitude that created a negative blogging environment. I was able to enjoy blogging and provide better content when I wrote with the same excitement that I spoke. I wrote from me, my experiences, not about them.

On some level, I think that perhaps he’s not sure if his traffic is not at the level he wants because of his content or simply because the blog is too young (it’s not even a year old yet). I remember long discussions on Skype and via email, helping to massage some content. And I actually enjoyed that as I found he has a stronger grasp of some things than I thought. He has a bright intellect and is excited about his experiences. Reflecting this into your content is important. Remember you’re writing to interested people, not at them. Your interested in garnering their participation not their unresponsive attention. In his case (and I experience similar), perhaps he’s so focused on his work and the actual content that he’s too quick to judge his content as ineffective or substandard. I’ve been guilty of this myself and think the best approach is to ask those around you to proof read your pending post. Find out what they think about it… I don’t mean if they like it or not. I mean the really nitty gritty, the guts of the content, for example:

• Is it missing some key issue or concept you’ve not considered?
• Could it be improved by hitting some mark closer?
• Is it something that can really be discussed or is it just facts?
• Does it provide some specific value and impart that to the reader?
• Could there be more detail and less generalization?
• How genuine is the content, does it provide a fresh perspective?

The above thought are just some of the things proof readers help me with. Their opinions really count. Anyone can point out spelling mistakes, but it’s valuable input like this that’s going to help your blog grow. Sometimes what you hear will by great, dynamite! Other times not so much so.

In terms of his blog, I think one key to help grow it is to try taking a different approach. Look at his competitors, see what they are doing. Don’t be afraid to try something new. Try moving in that new direction for a bit and see where it goes. I often make suggestions to clients and I often hear all sorts of reasons why something cannot be done. Instead we should all be focusing on how we can do something. To further address the point, in the immortal words of Yoda:

“Try not. Do… or do not. There is no try”

While I may repeat this quote somewhat with tongue in cheek and a smile, it’s actually quite apt.

In conclusion, among the best ways to grow your blog is to write in a way that makes you satisfied with the result. For example, something that you can tell a client to visit and read for more information when they ask you a question. Never write with the intent to garner sales, advertising revenue, and so on; as this will translate into your content. Remember your state of mind always effects how you write, just as much as how people perceive you in the offline world. Growing a blog takes time, it’s like nature, you can’t rush it.

You can grow your blog in great part by:

• Self promotion.
• Having faith in yourself.
• Accepting constructive criticism.
• Asking for help.
• Help and educate people with your content.
• Hold confidence in your knowledge and abilities.
• Interact with your readers.